Religious Experience Flashcards
What distinctive religious emotion do all religious experiences share according to Rudolph Otto?
The feeling of the numinous
This feeling is characterized as a unique emotional response to the divine.
How does William James describe the focus of religious experiences?
They are directed towards a religious object
This indicates that religious experiences are not defined by a single characteristic but by their orientation.
What concept did Walter Stace introduce regarding religious experiences?
Family resemblance concept
This concept suggests that religious experiences share a set of characteristics rather than a single defining trait.
What does ‘numen’ refer to in Otto’s work?
The divine, the non rational aspect of the divine
It emphasizes the mysterious and transcendent qualities of the divine.
Define ‘sui generis’ as used by Otto.
Of its own kind
This term denotes that the religious emotion is unique and cannot be reduced to other experiences.
What is Schleiermacher’s contribution to the concept of the numinous?
The feeling of absolute dependence
Otto critiques this by stating that Schleiermacher’s view is too simplistic and is regarding to parental dependence rather than the dependence that human have on God which is more greater and larger
What does Otto mean by ‘Creature Feeling’?
The emotion of a creature abased and overwhelmed by its own nothingness
It emphasizes the profound humility and awareness of one’s insignificance in the face of the divine.
What are the two moments of the ‘Mysterium Tremendum et Fascinans’?
Tremendum and fascinans
‘Tremendum’ refers to awe and fear, while ‘fascinans’ refers to bliss and peace.
What is the key issue in evaluating numinous experiences?
If the feeling is non rational, how can it provide rational justification for beliefs about God
This poses a challenge to traditional theological arguments.
Differentiate between institutional religion and personal religion according to William James.
Institutional religion: traditional practices and ceremonies; Personal religion: inner experiences and conscience
James argues that personal religion is foundational to institutional religion.
What is the genetic fallacy?
Making a conclusion based on the origin rather than the content
This fallacy can dismiss the value of an experience due to its psychological background.
What are the four common characteristics of conversion experiences identified by William James?
PINT: Passivity, Ineffability, Noetic quality, Transiency
These characteristics create a core understanding of religious conversion across traditions.
How does Stace categorize mystical experiences?
Extrovertive and introvertive experiences
Extrovertive experiences relate to sensory engagement with the world, while introvertive experiences focus on internal unity.
What is meant by ‘non sensuous and non intellectual’ in the context of mystical experiences?
Mystical experiences are devoid of imagery and do not involve intellectual processes
They focus purely on emotional states.
What does Stace mean by the ‘Universal Core’ of mystical experiences?
A common essence across different cultures and beliefs
This suggests that despite varying interpretations, mystical experiences share fundamental qualities.
